|
| Product Details Questions
|
| Q1: |
What is the graphics controller used
on the Rage 128 boards? |
| A1: |
The RAGE FURY, RAGE MAGNUM, and Xpert 128 are powered by
ATI's new RAGE 128GL graphics architecture. The new Xpert 2000 and Xpert
99 are powered by the Rage 128VR.
|
| Q2: |
What advanced chip technology is incorporated
into the RAGE 128 chip? |
| A2:
| The RAGE 128 (both GL and VR) technology
features many advanced and state of the art technology.
New technologies like: SuperScalar Rendering Engine, Twin
Cache Architecture, Single-Pass Multi Texturing and Concurrent
Command Engine, will provide the user with the best visual
experience with faster performance and crisper images.
SuperScalar Rendering
SuperScalar Rendering (SSR) is achieved through dual texture pipelines which
function like the twin engines of 3D graphics rendering. These operate completely
simultaneously enabling the processing of two pixels per clock, providing
a doubling of rendering performance.
Single-Pass Multitexturing
Single-Pass Multitexturing is being used by leading-edge games to process
multiple textures to create special effects, the concept being that you
would render both an object and its shadow, or an object and a lighting
map to enhance the image. The single-texturing units of the previous generation
would take a second pass to render those special effects, such as a bump,
or a shadow or lighting effect. The RAGE 128 answers the call of the developers
as it enables them to pull two textures to create these special effects
together on the fly with no performance loss.
Twin-Cache Architecture
Another significant architectural achievement contributing to the leadership
performance of the RAGE 128 is its Twin-Cache Architecture. Expanding to
achieve maximum performance, this architecture allows the efficient use
the cache resources on chip to deliver the maximum performance in all situations.
The benefits of this cache are not limited to 3D operations but also attain
optimal 2D and video performance.
Concurrent Command Engine
Optimized for Pentium II class systems and other next generation processors,
the RAGE 128 uses ATI's newly developed Concurrent Command Engine (CCE)
to achieve maximum efficiency across the entire system.
|
| Q3: |
What are all the board configurations
available? |
| A3:
| RAGE FURY 32MB w/TV - AGP
RAGE FURY 16MB no TV - AGP
RAGE FURY 32MB no TV - AGP
RAGE MAGNUM (32MB) - AGP
Xpert 2000 (32MB) - AGP (NEW!!!)
Xpert 128 (16MB) - AGP
Xpert 128 (16MB) - PCI (NEW!!!)
Xpert 99 (8MB) -AGP
|
| Q4: |
What is the difference between the
Rage 128 boards? |
| A4:
| See below for more information on the
industry standard VIP connector. Both AMC and VIP are
used by ATI to provide customers with a means to connect
"side-port" products like TV Tuners, DTV cards, etc.
|
RAGE FURY |
RAGE
MAGNUM |
XPERT 128 |
XPERT 99 |
XPERT 2000 |
| Graphics Engine |
RAGE 128 |
RAGE 128 |
RAGE 128 |
RAGE 128 |
RAGE 128 |
| Memory |
32MB & 16MB |
32MB |
16MB |
8MB |
32MB |
| Maximum 3D Resolutions |
|
|
|
|
|
| 65K
Colours |
1920x1440 (32MB) |
1920x1440 |
1600x1200 |
1280x1024 |
1920x1440 |
| 16.7M
Colours |
1920x1200 (32mb) |
1920x1200 |
1280x1024 |
1024x768 |
1920x1200 |
| DVD Video Playback |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| 2D Graphics Acceleration |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Max 2D Resolution |
1920x1200 |
1920x1200 |
1920x1200 |
1600x1200 |
1600x1200 |
| Built In TV Tuner |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
| Multimedia Connector |
32MB TV AMC,
16/32MB VIP |
VIP |
VIP |
VIP |
None |
| Supports ATI-TV
Wonder |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| TV/Video Output |
Optional 32MB Config |
No |
No |
No |
No |
| Video Input |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
| Operating System
Support |
|
|
|
|
|
| Windows
3.x/9x |
Win 98/95 |
Win 98/95 |
Win 98/95 |
Win 98/95 |
Win 98/95 |
| Windows
NT |
Win NT 4.0 |
Win NT 4.0 |
Win NT 4.0 |
Win NT 4.0 |
Win NT 4.0 |
| API Support |
|
|
|
|
|
| OpenGL |
Full OpenGL ICD |
ICD |
ICD |
ICD |
ICD |
| Direct3D |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| DirectX |
DirectX 5/6 |
DirectX 5/6 |
DirectX 5/6 |
DirectX 5/6 |
DirectX 5/6 |
| Tech Specs |
|
|
|
|
|
| Bus Type |
AGP 2X |
AGP 2X |
PCI or AGP 2X |
AGP 2X |
AGP 2X |
| Min System Required
(AGP) |
Pentium III/II,
Celeron or
compatible |
Pentium III/II,
Celeron or
compatible |
Pentium III/II,
Celeron or
compatible |
Pentium III/II,
Celeron or
compatible |
Pentium III/II,
Celeron or
compatible |
| Min System Required
(PCI) |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
| RAMDAC Speed |
250 MHz |
250 MHz |
250 MHz |
250 MHz |
250 MHz |
| Memory Interface |
128-bit |
128-bit |
128-bit |
64-bit |
64-bit |
| Maximum Refresh
Rate |
200 Hz |
200 Hz |
200 Hz |
200 Hz |
200 Hz |
| Available in Retail
Stores |
32MB version w/ TV
only |
Available in White
Box |
Yes |
Available in White
Box |
Available in White
Box |
|
| Q5: |
What are the various packaging formats
used by ATI for Rage 128 boards? |
| A5:
|
|
Packaging Format
|
Retail Giftbox
|
White Box |
Multipack |
|
Product
|
|
|
|
| RAGE FURY 32MB w/TV |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| RAGE FURY 16MB/32MB |
No/No |
Yes/Yes |
Yes/Yes |
| RAGE MAGNUM |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
| XPERT 2000 |
Yes - August '99 |
Yes |
Yes |
| XPERT 128 AGP |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| XPERT 128 PCI |
Yes |
No |
No |
| Xpert 99 |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
"Retail Giftbox" - fully colored box package most often purchased
through retail stores or on-line sites. The retail giftbox package provides
text on product featres and benefits and normally a free game bundle inside!
"White Box" - plain white box (no text) having similar contents as
the retail giftbox except the free games and perhaps certain documentation
(depends on card purchased) are not included. White box is not commonly
used in retail locations.
"Multipack" - this type of packaging is purchased by distributors,
OEMs, and system builders who want the most cost effective packaging for
building PCs with ATI product.
|
| Q6: |
What is the performance increase with
the ATI RAGE 128 products over current ATI RAGE PRO TURBO products? |
| A6:
| ATI RAGE 128 provides up to 3X 3D performance,
next generation 3D display quality and ultra high resolutions
up to 1920x1200.
|
| Q7: |
Can the on-board memory be upgraded? |
| A7:
| Rage 128 based boards are not memory upgradable.
|
| Q8: |
What is the benefit of large on-board
memories? |
| A8:
| With larger amounts of memory, you can
set your display to higher resolutions and greater color
depths (i.e., 32bit), giving you more crisp and detailed
images. With the added memory on board, you will realize
better performance with texture-intensive games and graphics
hungry applications. Developers are writing games and
applications that use larger, and more detailed textures,
thus increasing the need for memory. ATI answers this
call by providing large 16MB and 32MB!!! solutions in
order to ensure the end user experiences top game play
and application performance. Frame rates at higher resolutions
and color depths are maintained with a 32MB frame buffer.
16MB is sufficient for most applications, however robust
game performance will depend on texture transfers across
AGP which will slow performance.
|
| Q9: |
Why should I get a graphics board that
offers 32-bit true color rendering? |
| A9:
| With 32-bit color rendering you get millions
of more colors on your screen for life-like visuals and
smooth colors and graphics without a checkerboard look.
This translates into stunning images with tremendous color
depths. 32-bit color rendering also lets users see special
effects (particularly in a 3D environment) like reflections,
shadows, water depth etc. Today's game developers are
always pushing the limits of technology in order to deliver
to the end user faster games with better visual imagery.
However, many of today's gamers play games in 16bpp and
thus, realize very little of the overall visual experience.
Images and visual qualities (like shadows, and lighting
effects) are programmed into the game, however few users
get to see them because their graphics card won't provide
playable frame rates in higher color depths where these
amazing images are waiting!! With ATI's 32-bit (true color)
rendering technology, users can now play games in true
color - realize all of the amazing visual qualities and
images that exist in the game.
|
| Q10: |
Will there be PAL versions of these
RAGE 128 boards available? |
| A10:
| Yes, both NTSC and PAL versions for RAGE
FURY are available.
|
| Q11: |
Will there be a PCI version available? |
| A11:
| ATI has released a PCI version of Xpert
128 16MB. This product is shipping now to major retailers.
Please note that the PCI version does not have any multimedia
connectors on it. There is no VIP or AMC connector on
the PCI card.
|
| Q12: |
What software is included? |
| A12:
| The only software that is included in the
Giftbox products is the installation driver and ATI's
DVD playpack software. There are no game CD bundled in
the giftbox.
|
| Q13: |
What is the DAC speed of the Rage
128 Board products? |
| A13:
| The DAC of the RAGE 128 boards is 250Mhz
which provides flicker free ergonomic display.
|
| Q14: |
How will OEM manufactures use the
RAGE 128 chipset and boards and will these products differ from the retail
products? |
| A14:
| ATI is the world leader in graphics accelerator
chips and boards. Many large and small OEMs will be using
ATI RAGE 128 technology for both motherboard as well as
add-in-board solutions. The products available to these
customers may differ according to geographic or market
requirements. For example, TV-out might not be offered
by an individual OEM.
|
|
| Software and Hardware Support Questions
|
| Q15: |
What operating systems are supported
by ATI RAGE 128 graphics boards? |
| A15:
| Windows 95/98 and Windows NT 4.0. ATI has
full support for DirectX 6.x and OpenGL (Full OpenGL ICD).
Please note that Windows 95 does not permit the use of
AGP with graphics cards. To enable AGP with ATI products
in a Windows 95 environment, users must use update to
Windows 95b.
|
| Q16: |
a: Windows 2000 - will the Rage 128
boards have Win2k drivers/support? What features will be supported? |
| A16:
| For answers to Windows 2000 questions,
please refer to the Windows 2000 FAQ
|
| Q17: |
Recommended System and Processor Support
with the RAGE 128? |
| A17:
| ATI recommends Pentium III/II, Celeron
or AGP 1.0 compatible processor. There are no known issues
using our hardware with Pentium III/II, Celeron, AMD or
Cyrix processors. Performance and compatibility may vary
based on processor and motherboard. Check with your processor
and motherboard vendor to ensure compliance with ATI products.
|
| Q18: |
Do the Rage 128 boards support 3D
Now! instructions?
|
| A18:
| ATI's drivers for Rage 128 graphics accelerator
fully support AMD processors. ATI is planning further
optimizations for 3D Now! with a subsequent driver release
planned for Q3'99.
|
| Q19: |
Do the new board products from ATI
support anisotropic filtering? |
| A19:
| ATI designed the RAGE 128 chip to use bilinear
and trilinear filtering which provides the required filtering
benefits near that of anisotropic filtering without the
performance degradation that is normally required for
anisotropic filtering. In addition, current and most upcoming
applications are not designed to use anisotropic filtering.
This is mostly due to the performance penalty involved
in using this feature. Anisotropic Filtering was not a
design feature of the new RAGE 128 chip for these reasons.
|
| Q20: |
Are your board products PC 98 and
PC 99 Compliant? |
| A20:
| Yes. The new ATI graphics boards are fully
PC 98 and PC 99 compliant.
|
|
| Multimedia & Expansion Questions
|
| Q21: |
What is the "VIP" port on Xpert 128
(AGP only), Xpert 99 and RAGE MAGNUM? How does it differ from "AMC" on the
RAGE Fury? |
| A21:
| The Video Input Port (VIP) can accept connection
of compatible side port products like satellite receivers,
TV tuners, teletext decoders, DTV (Digital TV) cards,
HDTV (high definition TV) cards and other convergence
devices. VIP is an industry standard connector port. The
ATI Multimedia Channel is ATI's proprietary bus that is
very similar to VIP and both can accept most third party
device connections.
Note: the Xpert 128 PCI and the Xpert 2000 do not have an AMC or VIP connector.
|
| Q22: |
I own an ATI-TV (ISA). Can I connect
it to an Xpert 128, Xpert 99, Xpert 2000, RAGE FURY or RAGE MAGNUM ? |
| A22:
| The ATI TV (ISA) card is not supported
on the Xpert 128, Xpert 99, Xpert 2000, RAGE FURY or RAGE
MAGNUM products. Important: Do not try to connect your
AMC ATI-TV Tuner cable to your VIP connector on either
Xpert 128, Xpert 99, Xpert 2000, RAGE FURY or RAGE MAGNUM
boards. The AMC cable and VIP connector are pinned differently
and damage can occur to your graphics board if a connection
in this order is attempted.
|
| Q23: |
How is the hardware DVD/MPEG-2 acceleration
achieved? Do all the RAGE 128 based boards support this? |
| A23:
| All of the new RAGE 128 graphics boards
have integrated DVD/MPEG-2 decode (IDCT and Motion Compensation)
for industry leading DVD with the lowest possible CPU
usage (in Windows 98/95b only). With a DVD drive and ATI's
DVD player*, the customer can achieve full frame rate,
full screen DVD playback without the added expense of
purchasing a separate hardware DVD decode module as is
required with other competing products (not to mention
saving one of your computer's slots!).
*Each of the retail giftbox shipped between January and March, '99 (RAGE
FURY, Xpert 128) included a redemption coupon that customers could return
to ATI to receive, free of charge, the ATI DVD Player. As of mid March,
ATI transitioned retail packages to include the actual ATI DVD PLAYER CD.
Also, all other packaging (White box and Multipack) will also now include
the DVD Player software. The result here is that all customers of ATI Rage
128 product will have the necessary software to watch DVD movies on their
PC right out of the box!
More information
on DVD
If your questions aren't answered here or you would like more information
or even just to make a comment about our exciting new products you can use
the ATI Webform
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